The Present Disclosure relates, generally, to a terminal and a connector, and, more particularly, to a terminal and connector having a contact face on a contact arm portion which is able to follow and maintain contact with a contact face of another terminal.
In order to connect wiring such as a cable to a circuit board such as a printed circuit board, wire-to-board connectors are used. One example is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 2003-324071, the content of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein. When wire-to-board connectors are used, one connector is mounted on a circuit board, and then mated with another connector connected to the end of a cable.
FIGS. 8A and 8B are diagrams showing a terminal with a conventional connector. In this drawing, 863 is the main body portion of the terminal attached to a connector (not shown). A contact portion 864 is connected to the free end of the connector that makes contact with a terminal attached to another connector (also not shown). A thin gold sheet 871 is fixed to the curved surface of the contact portion 864 to conform to the uneven surface of the other terminal. In order to improve conformity to the uneven surface, a recessed portion 869 is press-molded in the surface of the contact portion 864, and the recessed portion 869 is crimp-filled with layers of gold foil 872. In this way, the thin gold sheet 871 can be deformed according to the surface unevenness of the other terminal, and the contact area with the surface of the other terminal can be ensured.
In a conventional terminal, the thin gold sheet 871 has to be fixed to the surface of the contact portion 864 along with gold foil 872. This increases costs. Also, the slender plate-shaped main body portion 863 does not possess sufficient spring action, and it is difficult to increase the contact pressure between the contact portion 864 and the other terminal. Because the thickness and width of the main body portion 863 have to be increased in order to increase the contact pressure between the contact portion 864 and the other terminal, the overall size of the terminal is increased.